Can I decompile an existing installer?: Difference between revisions

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We do not support this. It is up to the creator of the installer to decide whether he or she wants to make the script available.
Currently NSIS installers cannot be fully decompiled. We understand the need for secrecy of source code in many modern programs and thus NSIS does not store any code in the installer that can be completely decompiled back to the point where you have the original script. It is the developer's choice whether the source code for the installer is available to the public or not.
 
[http://www.7-zip.org 7-zip] (version 4.40beta at the time of this writing) supports decompressing NSIS installers compressed with LZMA, but the source code is still partially compiled and requires extensive modification before the script can be compiled by MakeNSIS.
 
As a general note to software developers, you should use a plugin like [[DcryptDll : Adding Encryption to NSIS|DCryptDll]] if you need to protect certain files in your installer.  


[[Category:General FAQ]]
[[Category:General FAQ]]

Revision as of 04:01, 4 May 2006

Currently NSIS installers cannot be fully decompiled. We understand the need for secrecy of source code in many modern programs and thus NSIS does not store any code in the installer that can be completely decompiled back to the point where you have the original script. It is the developer's choice whether the source code for the installer is available to the public or not.

7-zip (version 4.40beta at the time of this writing) supports decompressing NSIS installers compressed with LZMA, but the source code is still partially compiled and requires extensive modification before the script can be compiled by MakeNSIS.

As a general note to software developers, you should use a plugin like DCryptDll if you need to protect certain files in your installer.